Basketball Recap: La Porte Falls Despite Big Games from Destin Matzke and Sawyer Tonagel

La Porte lost against Valparaiso back in February of 2024 and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Thursday. The La Porte Slicers fell 58-50 to the Valparaiso Vikings. The Slicers were up 23-9 in the first quarter but couldn't hold on to the lead.

Sawyer Tonagel

Points (Career)

02/06/25 vs Valparaiso	19
11/26/24 @ South Bend Riley	18
01/31/25 @ Crown Point	17
01/10/25 @ Lake Central	17
12/27/23 vs Lowell	15

La Porte's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Sawyer Tonagel, who went 7 for 17 to rack up 19 points, and Destin Matzke, who went 5 of 9 on his way to 10 points and seven boards. Those 19 points gave Tonagel a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Nic Spence, who posted four points and 11 rebounds.

Even though they lost, La Porte smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in three consecutive games.

Valparaiso's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was LaVon Redmond, who put up nine points. Redmond is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 45% in the last three games he's played. Caden Crowell was another key player, putting up ten points and seven boards.

La Porte has been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 12-7 record this season. As for Valparaiso, the win (which was their fourth in a row) raised their record to 8-12.

La Porte has already played their next contest, a 70-51 victory against Kankakee Valley on the 8th. As for Valparaiso, they will take on Hobart at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. One thing working in Valparaiso's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last six games.